Retrievers first came into prominence in England during the early part of the nineteenth century, when increasing interest in the sport of wild fowling created a demand for dogs which not only would deliver game to hand but which were rugged enough to withstand the most arduous land and water conditions. To attain the type desired, explerimental crosses of setters, water spaniels and other sporting breeds were made with the small, lighter build of Newfoundland known as the St. John's Newfoundland. These dogs, which had been introduced to the British coast aboard fishing vessels, were noted for their endurance, excellence in swimming and ability to retrieve. Though their procedures in developing type differed, breeders shared a common purpose in producing strong dogs of moderate size with substance and bone. From their efforts, the four retriever breeds, the Curly Coat, the Wavy or Flat Coat, the Labrador and the Golden, eventually became standardized. The Wavy Coated Retriever resulted from the successful cross of the Gordon Setter with the St. John's dog and is one of the known forebears of the Golden.

Champion of the Golden Retriever was Lord Tweedmouth (formerly Sir Dudley Marjoribanks), whose carefully kept kennel records were made public years ago by his grandnephew, the Earl of Ilchester. Written in Tweedmouth's own hand, the records show that a dog called Nous (meaning wisdom) bred by Lord Chichester, was purchased in Brighton in the year 1865. The purchase was made from a cobbler, who explained that he had been given the dog in settlement of a debt and that it had been the odd yellow puppy in a litter of black Wavy Coats. Nous was the first of the yellow retrievers of any renown and he became the foundation stud of the famous Guisachan strain.

The location of Guisachan, Lord Tweedmouth's estate on the Tweed River at Beauly, near Inverness, Scotland, had a direct bearing upon the programme pursued by him to produce the characteristics he desired in his yellow retrievers; for along the shores of this river was a hardy type of spaniel used for retrieving, known as the Tweed Water Spaniel. This dog was descended from the ruggedly built water dogs which for years had been used along the British seacoast by families who depended upon the courage, intelligence and ability of these animals to retrieve game under all sorts of conditions. According to Dalziel, author of "British Dogs (1881)", the Tweed Water Spaniels were light liver in colour, so close in curl as to give the idea that they had originally been a cross from a smooth haired dog, long in tail, ears heavy in flesh and hard like a hounds, but only slightly feathered; forelegs feathered behind, hind legs smooth, head conical and lips slightly pendulous.

The author"Stonehenge" (John H. Walsh, author of books on dogs and former editor of the Field Magazine), said they resembled small ordinary English Retrievers. Though this variety of water spaniel has long since sunk into obscurity, its influence on the development of Golden Retrievers cannot be overlooked, for it was to a Tweed Water Spaniel named Belle that Nous was first mated.

This mating resulted in a litter of four yellow puppies in the year 1868, Ada, Crocus, Primrose and Cowslip. In order to establish uniformity of type, there followed a program of carefully considered line breeding. There were outcrosses to a second Tweed Water Spaniel and also to one of Sir Henry Mieux's Wavy Coats to keep the line strong. Later, experimental crosses were tried with an Irish Setter and another with a Bloodhound, but Tweedmouth's records show these crosses to have been made only once in the Guisachan kennel.

Puppies were occasionally given to members of Lord Tweedmouth's family, who helped to widen public appreciation of the beauty and usefulness of yellow retrievers. It was close to the lturn of the century however, before their colour became fashionable in the dog shows. By that time there were three other kennels whose names were linked with the yellows and which are known to have had dogs from the Guisachan strain - Ilchester, Ingestre and Culham. Their methos of selecting breeding stock differed somewhat from those used by Tweedmouth. For instance, the Earl of Ilchester, whose foundaltion bitch was Ada from the 1868 litter used black Wavy Coats and Labradors in his sbreeding program. Unfortunately Tweedmouth and Ilchester did not register their dogs but to the Ingestre and Culham names a large majority of Goldlens may be directly traced today.

Yellow Retrievers were classified as Wavy or Flat Coats until 1913, at which time they received recognition from the British Kennel Club as a separate variety and were called "Yellow or Goldlen Retrievers." In 1920 the name "Yellow" was dropped altogether.

The characteristics which makes this breed useful to the sportsmand also make it attractive to the pet owner. The Golden is gentle, sensitive, intelligent and willing. He should be ruggedly built and possess a thick, almost waterproof undercoat to withstand cold temperatures and icy water. His forte is retrieving from water, but he is equally useful on upland birds and can wind game from forty to fifty yards. He has a tender mouth. He is a popular contender in obedience circles and in recent years has gained recognition as a guide dog for the blind.

The Golden Retriever's rise in public esteem and appreciation has been rapid. This popularity can hold merit only so long as breeders are conscientious in their efforts to safeguard, through careful breeding programmes, the inherent qualitiies of type and temperament which Lord Tweedmouth and his followers strove to attain.